Wireless communication systems, such as the 3rd Generation (3G) of mobile telephone standards and technology, are well known. An example of such 3G standards and technology is the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS™), developed by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP™) (3gpp.org). The 3rd generation of wireless communications has generally been developed to support macro-cell mobile phone communications. Such macro cells utilise high power base stations (NodeBs in 3GPP parlance) to communicate with wireless communication units within a relatively large geographical coverage area. Typically, wireless communication units, or User Equipment (UEs) as they are often referred to in 3G parlance, communicate with a Core Network (CN) of the 3G wireless communication system via a Radio Network Subsystem (RNS). A wireless communication system typically comprises a plurality of radio network subsystems, each radio network subsystem comprising one or more cells to which UEs may attach, and thereby connect to the network. Each macro-cellular RNS further comprises a controller, in a form of a Radio Network Controller (RNC), operably coupled to the one or more Node Bs, via a so-called Iub interface.
The second generation wireless communication system (2G), also known as GSM, is a well-established cellular, wireless communications technology whereby “base transceiver stations” (equivalent to the Node B's of the 3G system) and “mobile units” (user equipment) can transmit and receive voice and packet data. Several base transceiver stations are controlled by a Base Station Controller (BSC), equivalent to the RNC of 3G systems.
Lower power (and therefore smaller coverage area) femto-cells (or pico-cells) are a recent development within the field of wireless cellular communication systems. Femto-cells or pico-cells (with the term femto cells being used hereafter to encompass pico-cells or similar) are effectively communication coverage areas supported by low power base stations (otherwise referred to as Access Points (APs) or Home Node B's (HNBs) or evolved Home Node B's (HeNB's). These femto-cells are intended to be able to be piggy-backed onto the more widely used macro-cellular network and support communications to UEs in a restricted, for example ‘in-building’, environment. Each femto-cell (or pico-cell) is I served by one Access Point.
Typical applications for such Access Points include, by way of example, residential and commercial locations, communication ‘hotspots’, etc., whereby Access Points can be connected to a core network via, for example, the Internet using a broadband connection or the like. In this manner, femto cells can be provided in a simple, scalable deployment in specific in-building locations where, for example, network congestion at the macro-cell level may be problematic.
Although there are no standard criteria for the functional components of a HNB (or Access Point), an example of a typical HNB for use within a 3GPP system may comprise Node-B functionality and some aspects of Radio Network Controller (RNC) functionality.
A HNB is an access point that provides a wireless interface for a user equipment connectivity. It provides a radio access network connectivity to a user equipment (UE) using the so-called Iuh interface to a network access controller known as a Home Node B Gateway (HNB-GW). One HNB-GW can provide network connectivity of several HNB's to a core network.
Conventionally, in a femto-cell network, each HNB has an Iuh connection to a single HNB-GW (Access Point).
Often in a femto-cell network, an access point management system (or HNB management system) is provided which communicates with the access point controller (HNB-GW). This management system is typically configured to manage a large number of access points (HNB's), for example, monitoring, software upgrades, failure management.
Each access point (HNB) goes through a registration procedure in order to establish a communications link with the network access controller (HNB-GW). Conventionally, it does this using a HNB application part (HNB AP) request message. If the registration has been successful, the HNB-GW returns a HNBA P register accept message.
When a user equipment (UE) camps on to a particular HNB, the HNB attempts to register the UE with the HNB-GW by sending a HNBAP UE register request message. The message can contain a UE identity and will be acknowledged with an accepted message via the HNB-GW if the registration is successful.
The HNB monitors the UE via periodic location updates. If a number of location updates are missed, the HNB assumes that the UE is no longer camped on and has left the HNB's’ area of coverage. The HNB then informs the HNB-GW of this occurrence by sending a HNB AP deregister message.
A current industry model is to implement a GSMA one API on one of three places: viz. on the user equipment (for handset applications) or on the femto-cell (for local applications) or on the application Gateway (for external third-party access). The GSMA one API is an application programming interface which has been developed by the GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) Association. It is intended to be a web service interface. An application developed with one API can obtain information across network operators that support it. It is intended for operation on servers and mobile devices and the first API's to be implemented will be for messaging and location functions. Specifically, version 1 requires “location presence” capability and the ability to send and receive short message services (SMS) and multimedia messaging services (MMS) through the application Gateway using the GSMA one API.
“Presence” services in general permit an individual and equipment which he uses for communication to share information on the state of the individual and that equipment. Such information can include whether the individual and his communication equipment are currently able to communicate with others or engaged on a video call, for example. “Presence” can also include information relating to the location of a user communication equipment.
Location information can be very useful to retailers and advertisers who may wish to communicate with shoppers who are known to be in a certain location at a certain time, a shopping mall for example. Hence, it would be advantageous to provide a means for providing such location presence information. It would also be advantageous to provide a centralized GSMA one API Application Gateway for location presence.